July 20, 2010

I'm sure by now you have noticed how I have been completely overtaken by the wonderful flavours of matcha this month. When I see a cake recipe I start to wonder how it might taste like if I added a tablespoon of matcha in the dough, and that's what happened this time too... I could not help myself but make my version of the popular American pop tarts.

Process the flour, sugar, salt, matcha and butter in a food processor until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Whisk the egg and the milk together and pour into the dough. Stir well and knead the dough lightly until smooth.

Divide the dough into two equal portions and roll each part into a thin sheet. Cut the sheets into about 8cm x 11cm disks. Brush half of the disks with the egg. Place a spoonful of sweet red bean paste on the egg-brushed disks (leaving some space around the edges) and place the other ("clean") halves on top.

Press firmly to seal the pastry on all sides. Press the edges with a fork all around the regtangle and prick the top multiple times.

Place the tarts on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Refrigerate while you preheat the oven to 180C. Bake the tarts for 20-25 minutes.

Loved the colour of the dough!

Spoon some filling on half of the disks

Press the edges with a fork and prick all over

Bake until slightly browned

An (Sweet Adzuki Paste)(recipe by Kimiko Barber The Japanese Kitchen)

225g adzuki beans225g sugar (I use about half of this)a pinch of salt

Put the beans in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil, then take of the heat and drain. Put the beans back in to the saucepan and add 750ml water. Leave to soak overnight, discarding any that float. Put the saucepan of beans on a high heat and bring to boil. Reduce the heat after about 5 minutes and leave to simmer for one hour or until the beans are soft. Add 50ml water when the liquid has reduced by half and stir. Do this twice more. Add the sugar and the salt and stir well to dissolve.